


Sedate

by Anonymous



Category: The Death Gate Cycle - Margaret Weis & Tracy Hickman
Genre: Established Relationship, Fluff, Gentle Sex, Gentleness, M/M, No Plot/Plotless, Post-Canon, Praise Kink, Present Tense, Sex as Relaxation, Sexual Content
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-08
Updated: 2020-07-08
Packaged: 2021-03-04 17:33:52
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,690
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25150195
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/
Summary: Taking things slowly is an acquired skill, especially for a Patryn who never had much chance to learn. But it's a skill Haplo is more than happy to let Alfred teach.
Relationships: Haplo/Alfred Montbank
Comments: 2
Kudos: 4
Collections: Anonymous





	Sedate

The thing about Alfred-- well, there are a lot of things about Alfred-- but the thing Haplo is thinking about Alfred now is how very gentle he is.

Slowing down, relaxing, taking time to savor good things: these are skills that Haplo had to learn later in life, after the Labyrinth and Xar and Death’s Gate. Some things Haplo could figure out on his own, like the pleasure of going to bed in safety, knowing there would be a warm body beside you, or eating food for the taste instead of for pure survival.

Other things, Alfred had helped teach him. Things like warm baths and well-cooked meals and sleeping in. More recently, with a shift in their relationship, these lessons had become applied to still more intimate pleasures. In the Labyrinth, such things are exciting and passionate and explosive: short bursts of pleasure quickly snuffed out by the danger on all sides. Alfred certainly doesn’t seem to mind that sort of lovemaking-- quite the opposite, Haplo thinks he enjoys letting himself get swept up in it-- but sometimes he also guides Haplo to slow down, to stretch it out. Haplo had known sex could be cathartic, intimate, even emotional, but he had never really thought of it as relaxing or calming, before Alfred.

That realization begins one evening, when Alfred guides him to the bedroom, and Haplo is surprised not to be pulled into a kiss straight away, like he thought. Instead, Alfred puts his hands on Haplo’s shoulders and pushes him back into a seated position.

“You need a break,” he says seriously.

Haplo raises his eyebrows. “I thought that was what we were doing.”

“We are,” Alfred agrees with a smile, and threads his fingers into Haplo’s hair, guiding it behind his ear. “Just… let me take care of it, for now. Is that okay?”

Haplo isn’t completely sure what Alfred means by that, but Alfred looks confident, and that sets him at ease-- Alfred can still become nervous or shy in these situations, but it happens much less often, these days, as he’s figured out just how much Haplo enjoys this. So Haplo nods, and Alfred smiles a bit, and his eyes are gentle, always gentle and full of affection, and Haplo can’t help leaning forward to kiss him.

Alfred lets him, keeps it soft and light, and then one large hand rises to Haplo’s cheek and pushes him away, thumb stroking over his cheekbone. He rises to press a kiss to Haplo’s forehead. “Close your eyes?” he suggests.

Haplo lets his eyes fall shut, still curious where exactly Alfred is going with this, but he won’t question it. He can feel one of Alfred’s hands at his shoulder, the other still cupping his cheek, and then Alfred is nuzzling against Haplo’s face, leaving lingering kisses to his brow, his eyelids, down to his jaw. When he reaches Haplo’s lips, Haplo kisses back, blindly letting his hands reach up to take Alfred’s waist. Usually, he likes the feel of Haplo holding him there, but today Alfred reaches down to loosely grasp Haplo’s wrists and pulls away from his lips just slightly.

His fingers brush against Haplo’s hands and wrists as he guides them back to Haplo’s sides. “Let me, okay?” he says quietly, so Haplo can feel his breath against his lips. Haplo’s heart beats a little faster, and he keeps his hands where Alfred has placed them.

“Good,” Alfred says, and Haplo feels him kiss his chin, the corner of his lips, as his hands drift up Haplo’s arms back to his shoulders, making Haplo shiver. The hands stay on his shoulders, as if to warm him, and Alfred kisses him again. This time, Haplo thinks he’s caught on to Alfred’s intent, and so he lets Alfred lead them both, responding when he nibbles and sucks at Haplo’s lips, opening his mouth to it, but not escalating, just staying pliant.

He feels a warm hand return to his cheek, and then fingers at the back of his head sifting through his hair, and he can’t hold back a small sigh. It feels nice, even when he very much wants to touch Alfred back. It feels better when Alfred pulls Haplo's head back just slightly, exposing his neck, and Haplo lets out a shaking breath when Alfred leans down to press his lips there.

Alfred noses along Haplo’s neck to kiss beneath Haplo’s jaw, then pulls away, though his hands stay right where they are, touching slowly and carefully. Alfred’s fingers replace his lips, and Haplo lets them caress his face lovingly, kissing the fingertips as they brush softly over his lips. Through all of this, Haplo keeps his eyes closed, as requested. His face is growing warm, and he lets out a shuddering sigh, aware of Alfred’s hands and his own heartbeat against his chest.

“Perfect,” he hears Alfred say. “Just relax, and let me.”

Next, he feels Alfred’s fingers drift down to his collarbone, loosening his shirt before taking it off of him. The sudden coolness coupled with Alfred’s warm hands playing over his shoulders and chest makes Haplo shiver. His arms are growing heavier by his sides, relaxing there, forgetting the previous urge to touch back, to bring Alfred closer.

When Alfred gently guides Haplo backwards to lay on the bed, Haplo has no choice but to follow, unable to think far beyond the warm touches lingering over his neck, his collarbone, his shoulders and arms, down to his chest. The fingers trace carefully over every part of him, relaxing and soothing and memorizing. They reach his heart-rune, and Haplo inhales deeply, unconsciously letting his chest press up into Alfred’s hands, which stay there, brushing back and forth until Haplo relaxes again.

“Lovely. You’re lovely like this,” he hears Alfred say, and Haplo opens his eyes, surprised to realize how heavy they are. He sees Alfred kneeling beside him, his hands on Haplo, watching him with undisguised adoration. His face flushes a little more when he sees Haplo looking up at him through half-lidded eyes, but he doesn’t stop, and Haplo finds his eyes slipping closed again.

Haplo shivers when Alfred begins to remove his trousers for him, his body responding to every touch, but he’s glad when Alfred avoids more deliberate caresses. It’s not that what he’s doing isn’t sexual. It absolutely is; Haplo’s nerves are singing with it. But it’s lost its urgency, lacking the need for completion that Haplo normally associates with sex. No, this by itself is too good, just submitting to Alfred’s caresses without thought, sitting in the feeling of heat in his face, a warm rush of adrenaline coursing through the rest of his body. He would gladly lay here for hours, letting Alfred do whatever he liked with him. Every inch of his skin is hot, sensitive to the other man’s touch, and his limbs have gone heavy at his sides, and Haplo’s mind is a wonderful haze, thinking only of how good he feels, of Alfred’s voice far away, murmuring praise.

He feels those warm, gentle hands drift down to his hip, and his prick aches pleasantly, but Alfred makes no move towards it, holding steady at his hip, sometimes drifting up to trace over the runes tattooed on his torso, or down over his thighs, which move easily at his direction.

It’s too good, and Haplo craves it. His hips chase Alfred’s hands in slow, wanting pushes, not with any goal in mind, but simply because the movement itself feels good, a sign of just how undone he is becoming.

“Look at you, such a beautiful thing,” Haplo hears distantly. Alfred’s hands stay where they are, but he lets Haplo make those needy movements, and when they finally peter out, his hands slide down the last distance to his hard shaft.

Haplo whimpers at the first touch, too far gone to care, too focused on how it feels, deliberate and full but still slow, dragging across his skin with perfect heat and tightness. His hips fall back into their rhythm, and Alfred lets him mindlessly chase his pleasure. With each movement, he presses himself deeper into Alfred’s hand, mind clear of any other thought besides simple want. 

“So good, love. Just like that. Show me just what you need.” Alfred keeps touching him, his fingers tracing lines of the runes that exist even here, but he does nothing to stop Haplo from finishing, keeps his hand blessedly warm over him even as he spends.

Haplo’s head is buzzing, limbs still pleasantly heavy, eyes still closed. He can’t remember the last time he was this relaxed, this boneless. And still Alfred’s hands are on him, careful and warm and attentive. He hears him shift, and sighs when he feels Alfred’s lips at his shoulder, then down to his hip, then to his spent prick. It twitches lazily at the familiar softness of Alfred’s mouth, but the kiss is gentle, like all Alfred’s touches have been, with no intent behind it. Just as well, for Haplo is in danger of falling asleep at any moment.

Alfred’s voice sings a few words that clean both of them, and then his lips drift back up Haplo’s hips, across his abdomen and chest, lingering on his collar bone, and finally pressing a few kisses to his jaw and forehead. Their lips meet chastely, Alfred’s forehead pressed against his own. Alfred is still dressed, Haplo notes vaguely. 

“Good?” Alfred asks, his voice barely more than a whisper.

Reluctantly, Haplo lets his eyes flutter open. Alfred is looking down at him in a way that makes his chest ache. He makes a sound of agreement, words seeming like so much effort. That seems to please Alfred, who smiles down at him, one hand resting on his shoulder.

“Was really good, Coren,” Haplo mumbles, remembering how words work.

“Good,” he murmurs, and he moves to rest his head on Haplo’s other shoulder, nose rubbing against his neck. 

“You need anything? I can…”

Alfred shushes him. “Maybe in the morning. Rest for now, love.”

Haplo hums in agreement, already feeling himself drifting off.


End file.
